Project Canvas: Approval granted by BBC Trust

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The BBC's controlling body, the BBC Trust, has given the green light for its involvement in Project Canvas, providing it sticks to certain agreements.

These include the condition that the project actively engages with the industry on a wider scale as it develops including content providers and ISPs, as well as including industry consultation along the way.

The Trust has also said that the costs to the BBC should not be more than 20 per cent over what they have budgeted for it over the first 5 years and that Project Canvas will not infringe upon any competition-based laws "in recognition of the potential impacts on the market if Canvas is successful".

"The Trust has concluded that Project Canvas will deliver significant public value for licence fee payers - people with a broadband connection will be able to access a wide range of on-demand content including BBC iPlayer, free of charge, through their TV sets", said Diane Coyle, BBC trustee and chair of the trust's strategic approvals committee.

"We are delighted by today’s news. The BBC Trust has subjected the proposals to the highest level of scrutiny and the findings reflect over a year of consultation and debate. The partners will work through the final conclusions and conditions and step up our engagement with the wider industry as we plan towards a consumer launch.

"Project Canvas will safeguard the future of the UK’s free-to-air TV platforms and allow new business models to thrive through an open, internet-connected, TV platform. This brings the benefits of next-generation TV to all consumers, including those who choose not to subscribe to pay-TV. We look forward to rising to that challenge".

See below for all our our Project Canvas related posts, in case you've missed some of the important twists and turns in what has been a very bumpy road for the scheme so far...